EuroMillions winners: jackpot can result in misery, psychologst warns

People might think that winning £161 million would mean the end of their woes
but a psychologist said today that the money is more likely to create
problems.

2:35PM BST 15 Jul 2011

Paddy O'Donnell, psychology professor at the University of Glasgow, said that winning such a large windfall creates an ''enormous disruptive effect'' which can change friendships and family relations.

He said winners would experience an initial surge of happiness but that within a few months this would probably drop back to the level of contentment they felt before their windfall.

His comments came after a couple from Ayrshire scooped the EuroMillions £161 million jackpot on Tuesday night, the largest in Europe.

One of the challenges facing those who win huge sums is the experience of being catapulted into the league of the super-rich without the skills to deal with it.

Professor O'Donnell said: ''When you get £161 million you can't improve your present life because you are disrupting your present life. You face questions like: should you live in a different part of town or abroad?

''But when you live in a wealthy area or abroad, how are you going to cope with the people you might meet in that environment? £161 million doesn't give you the social skills to mix with Rupert Murdoch or Richard Branson.

''It's like marrying a prince or a princess: you still have to cope with the in-laws and you are in a social environment which is alien to you.''

Winning such a large amount can also strain friendships because the dynamic of the relationships shift.

Dealing with begging letters from friends and charities is likely to be another challenge, as is deciding how to spend or invest the money wisely.

Prof O'Donnell said: ''Unless you have been brought up and educated in how to handle £161 million, it tends to disrupt your present relationships but not equip you necessarily to deal with the new relationships you are going to develop.''

Most people's happiness runs at a constant level and money does not have that much impact on it beyond a certain financial level, he said.

According to Prof O'Donnell, someone earning £25,000 a year would be more or less as happy as someone earning £250,000 a year.

He added: ''If you ask people how they would feel if they won the lottery, everybody says 'I would feel superb. I would be happy for the rest of my life.'

''But when you follow people up several months or years later, what happens is there's an initial surge and increase in well-being but then what happens is it tends to trend down to what it was before.''

However, big-money winners can use certain strategies to help cope with their new-found wealth, he said, adding that they should be ''very practical'' in their approach.

He advised against making any impulsive decisions and said winners ought to think carefully about what they want before making a long-term plan.